Back Icon Back to Blog

3 “Insider Tips” to Choosing the Best Rental Property

Finding the right property to invest in requires years of experience. It goes beyond just the location of the property, and it takes a trained eye to seek out the best investments.

If you are thinking about investing in a property, we want to offer some great tips on finding the best rental possible. Here are three characteristics we use at Holdfolio to determine if we want to invest in a rental property.

3 Things to Look for in a Rental Property and What to Avoid

1. A Substantial Amount of Cash Gain from Day One!

Robert Kyosaki, a well-known American investor and entrepreneur, once said it is imperative to make money when you buy a property. This way from the start there is no need to play a game of catch-up. You can lose a lot of money if there is the need to invest in improvements immediately upon buying a property.

What to Avoid: Properties that have a negative cash flow from the start when there is a mortgage involved.

2. In-Depth Look at Location

Thanks to the internet, it is easier than ever before to research every aspect of the location of your property. You can use websites like City Data or Zillow to do in-depth research on everything from the crime to the walkability of a neighborhood.

What to Avoid: Even if you find a property that is in a good area, it is important to check out the schools. No one wants to bus their kids to a school with a bad reputation if they can avoid it.

3. Condition of the Property

The structural soundness of the property is very important to check out. Take a look at the roof, foundation, walls, chimneys, etc. If you do not know what to look for during a home inspection, bring in a trusted inspector to check out the property with you.

What to Avoid: Properties with long-term repairs that send your cash flow in the negative due to ongoing maintenance.

Still Not Sure?

Investing in a rental property is no easy task. Make sure not to settle on the first reasonable prospect, but the property that is right for you. With enough patience and know-how you’ll be seeing a ROI before you know it.

Ready to invest in real estate?

We make real estate investing simpler, more transparent, and accessible to individual investors.

Jacob Blackett

Originally from Reno, Nevada, Jacob began his real estate career in 2010 as a sophomore at the University of Nevada, Reno, when he bought and sold his first two residential “fix and flip” properties in Southern California.

In 2014 Jacob founded Holdfolio and by the end of 2019, Holdfolio had amassed a rental portfolio of 141 single-family homes and 412 apartment units. At this time Holdfolio was fully vertically integrated, meaning they were operating every aspect of the investment cycle which included acquisitions, procuring bank loans, raising capital from investors, running a full-service property management company, a licensed construction company, and performing their own asset management.

Fueled by low interest rates and strong rent growth, real estate values increased steadily and dramatically between 2010 and 2020, and by early 2020 Holdfolio could not pay as much as other firms on new acquisitions. Jacob took this as an opportunity to sell all of Holdfolio’s holdings and pivot the business model to see more deal flow and invest with much larger and more experienced firms, which is how Holdfolio operates today.

Follow Jacob on:

Ready to invest in real estate?

We make real estate investing simpler, more transparent, and accessible to individual investors.